a) What is cross-cultural training and what is its purpose??b) What is training rigour and what role does it play in cross-cultural training? Give examples of cross-cultural training programs that vary in terms of the degree of training rigour.

a) Cross-cultural training comprises training programs that prepare employees for working and living in different cultures and for interactions with persons from different backgrounds. The purpose is to prepare the employee for working in a different culture and increase the chances that he will be able to adjust and have a successful assignment.
b) A critical factor in the success of cross-cultural training is training rigour. Training rigour refers to "the degree of mental involvement and effort that must be expended by the trainer and the trainee in order for the trainee to learn the required concepts." Training rigour also refers to the length of time spent on training. The degree of cross-cultural training rigour required by an expatriate for a particular foreign assignment depends on three dimensions: cultural toughness, communication toughness, and job toughness. Cultural toughness refers to how difficult it is to adjust to a new culture. Communication toughness is a function of the extent to which the expatriate will have to interact with the locals of the host country. Job toughness refers to how difficult the tasks will be for the expatriate compared to what she is used to doing. As the levels of these three dimensions increase, the type of cross-cultural training required will need to be more rigorous. Cross-cultural training programs that are considered to have a high degree of rigour include interactive language training, cross-cultural simulations, and field trips. Programs with a moderate degree of training rigour include role plays, cases, and survival-level language. Cross-cultural training programs that are considered to be the lowest in terms of training rigour include lectures, films, books, and area briefings.